The Downing Arts Podcast

The Master Professor Graham Virgo discusses his favourite film. Cover image copyright Eva Rinaldi, licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic licence . -=-=-=- Friday 17 October, 9-11pm, JCR: DCMS Open mic. Check out the Instagram page for details. @downingcollegemusicsociety Sunday 19 October, 6pm, Chapel: Evensong sung by the Chapel Choir. Music by Orlando Gibbons an...

Downing alumna Natasha Atkinson and fourth-year Trinity student Nat Riches chat about their show '1816: The Year Without a Summer', currently touring the UK. Cover image copyright Nat Riches and Natasha Atkinson. -=-=-=- Thursday 9 October, 6-6.45pm, Chapel: Welcome Evensong for Postgraduate Freshers. Sunday 12 October, 6pm, Chapel: Evensong sung by the Chapel Choir. Music by Thomas Tallis. Sunday...

Downing Freshers' Reps: Mercedes van Niekerk, Mia Lee, Edward Campbell, and Bwalya Kalusa. @downingfreshers2025 / @downingfreshersplay / @downingdramaticsociety_ Email: president@dds.dow.cam.ac.uk -=-=-=- Downing College Music Society: Ria Sood (President) & Lola Pesskin (Vice-president). @downingcollegemusicsociety / @downingjazzband Email: college.music@dow.cam.ac.uk -=-=-=- The Chapel Choir...

A feature-length episode to finish off this first series of the Downing Arts Podcast. We catch up with departing Organ Scholar Dominic Remedios, and meet up with Dr Bonnie Lander-Johnson to discuss her recently published book, plus a special interview with alumnus Chris Dickins, current star of 'Mamma Mia!'. -=-=-=- Thursday 26 June, 5.30-6.30pm, Heong Gallery: Gillian Ayres' favourite music is pe...

DDS President Lily Ellis and May Week Show producer Joe Short discuss the forthcoming production of 'As You Like it', and the Griffin Singers chat all things Barbershop. Cover image copyright Louisa Denby. -=-=-=- Interviewees: Lily Ellis (third-year Education student) & Joe Short (third-year English student); Griffin Singers Barbershop Quartet: Dominic Remedios (MPhil, Geography), George Jack...

First-year engineer James Waine tells us about the epic outdoor theatre Kynren, for which he volunteers every summer. www.11arches.com Cover image copyright Neil Milburn. -=-=-=- Friday 13 June, 12.30-1pm, Heong Gallery: Staff & students' tours of the Gillian Ayres Exhibition. Email gallery@dow to book your place. Saturday 14 June, 8.30pm, Howard Theatre: Footlights Stand-Up Showcase. Tickets...

Curator Martin Gayford talks about Gillian Ayres and the new exhibition, and fifth-year medic James Bibey discusses his favourite piece of music. Cover image copyright Keith Eyeons. Interview with James Bibey recorded April 2025. -=-=-=- Martin Gayford has written prolifically about art and jazz, contributing regularly to the Daily Telegraph and to many art magazines and exhibition catalogues. He ...

We catch up with third-year student Tomos Davies, currently on his year abroad in Peru, chatting travel and photography. Cover image copyright Tomos Davies. -=-=-=- Thursday 29 May, 5.30-7.30pm, Howard Theatre: Film screening "A History of the Present". Tickets may be booked here: https://tinyurl.com/2asy9z6a. Thursday 29 May, 9.30-10pm, Chapel: Choral Compline Sunday 1 June, 6-7pm, Chapel: Choral...

First-year medical student Bede Doe gives his take on the Paddington film trilogy. Cover image "Paddington", Paddington Bear, Paddington Station by Oast House Archive. File licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en. -=-=-=- Thursday 22 May, 5-6pm, Heong Gallery: Film screening "A glimpse of Venice in Camb...

Imi Barnes and Denise Robalo chat about their experiences on the Advanced Popular Performance Scheme. Cover photo copyright Sarah Higgins. -=-=-=- The Advanced Popular Performance Scheme is a new initiative from the Centre for Music Performance that has been created to promote excellence in popular music at the University of Cambridge. The scheme supports four student bands and four vocalists with...

Alumnus competition success and a chat with cellist Adrian Tsui about the music scene in Hong Kong. Cover photo copyright Louisa Denby. -=-=-=- Adrian Tsui studied on the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts' youth programme for seven years, before continuing his musical development at the Royal Academy of Music (London, UK) with Professor Lionel Handy. In 2020 he was awarded the Prince Philip Sch...

We reveal the winners of the Twining Egginton Prize in Fine Arts, before meeting Dr Rachel Coombes, Keeper of the Heong Gallery. Nick and Sara Rawlinson chat about the recent Magma Rising exhibition. Cover image copyright Sara Rawlinson. -=-=-=- Dr Rachel Coombes specialises in the visual and musical culture of late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century France. Her broader research interests lie...

Welcome to the first episode of the Downing Arts Podcast! Join us as we launch the Creative Arts Strategy and the Leaves anthology, and discover the winner of the Twining Egginton Prize in Fine Arts. Interviewees: Professor Graham Virgo, Sapphy Dunn, Jude Hughes, and Charlotte Payne. https://www.dow.cam.ac.uk/creative-arts

Hear all about the new Downing Arts podcast!